Why my 9 to 5 prompted my next trip

We are forever complaining about our 9 to 5, the daily grind, wishing we were in an exotic location all carefree.

However for me my 9 to 5 gives me (asides from money) perspective on life. Working with cancer patients and hearing their stories of how they planned to take ‘that trip’ then got their diagnosis shook me to the core.

Our health truly is our wealth, as cliched as it may sound and I still want to hike that mountain in good health or wander aimlessly without a care and thus stumbling on hidden gems. Life truly is precious and I don’t want to live in regret because I think I have to save money for that ‘house, car, marriage, etc.’ I can still have all that in life, not instead of just because I choose to travel.

The beautiful gem that is Snowdonia!

Society always wants you to conform but most times your happiness lies in your non-conformity. Also you can feel so overwhelmed with ideas you have for your life that you choose one that is odd to what people expect of you.

So I decided to up and end my contract and take myself to Ecuador to learn Spanish. I just felt it was a strong now or never decision. It has been one of my dreams for such a long time to be in this part of the world for a prolonged period of time so I decided to just ‘go for it!’

It doesn’t seem like a big deal to many but let me tell you why others will say ‘WHAT ARE YOU DOING?’:

I’m British Nigerian with Nigerian parents. If you know you know. If you don’t, engage with me in the comments lol.

I’m female and single – first I get the ‘its dangerous story’, and I am in no means naive to this but heck am I gonna let fear stop me? I gotta roll with what life throws at me. I’d love to do this with a significant other but I’m not gonna be waiting on it.

I’m not of that ‘gap year/finding yourself’ age – or so society wants to tell me. I’m not in my delicious 20’s which seems to be the decade to do this but I could not give a monkeys if this ‘isn’t whats done at my age.’ Age is just an excuse people use for me to stop having fun! I also, get the whole ‘are you having a 30s crisis?’ Nope this isn’t even a ‘finding myself’ trip, I just wanted to do it and I only had excuses telling me not to. However I do want to learn from this trip so that brings me to…

What I hope to learn on this trip?

SPANISH – I think this is a given really, given I’ve enrolled into an intensive school for a month. Let’s hope I come home more confident in the language. One thing I will say is Spanish is hard and having English as my first language is doing me absolutely no favours. I may not come back as fluent as people expect but I will certainly get in the ring and give it a go!

Stripping it all back – from the noise of my everyday life and just being away. I don’t need that £16 toner to ensure my skin is ‘popping.’ Stripping it back not just materially but also in terms of knowing solidly ‘whats next?’ I will enjoy this season of changeable plans and even though I have never been a control freak in any way its still weird to not have every detail planned in a world that asks it of you.

Prepping for the trip, luggage wise

Dependence on God – when you strip all the things that you falsely put your trust in – your job, salary, where you live, relationships you are left with you depending on Him and as I travel solo even more so, so I hope I dig deeper in trusting Him and not just saying it but doing it.

Get out of my comfort zone – I’m not the greatest at meeting people. Small talk bores me immensely and I have reliably been informed by my cousin however tedious I find it, its needed to develop relationships. Solo travel, I hope will force me to be open to speaking with others. When you live in your bubble of life and type of friend you get lazy and don’t hear other viewpoints that could change your thinking.

So there you have it – please don’t discount your 9 to 5 (or whatever hours your job yields for you), it can be a grind as I said before but that ‘grind’ is part of the journey called life and rather than focusing on an end point of ‘success’ enjoy the ride you’ve been blessed with. The job you are in now can teach you the very next dream you want to take like mine did.

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26 thoughts on “Why my 9 to 5 prompted my next trip”

Tayo, I’m so proud of you for having the courage to embrace more of what you love. I hope this season is everything you imagined and more, and I pray it brings you to a deeper understanding of who you are and what God has called you to do. Be well xx

Such a inspiring read. I have been questioning if the sacrifices I have made for my 9 to 5 have been worth it. I don’t discount the job – very grateful for it but it has always come first above the things that are “now or never” like ability to go learn a new language and lately I have been wondering if it is too late to correct the priorities (and yes ! The Nigerian part is very loud in in the argument against correcting priorities).

So glad you found it inspiring! Trust me our Nigerian heritage doesn’t always help us in the best way as beautiful as it is. But at the end of the day we have to do what we want. We can still have all the things (if we want it) that is the ‘norm’ but just do it on our own terms and timing!

Love the post and fully understand where you’re coming. I received the same reaction from my dad, you should be getting married and not galvanting. While others including extended family were not surprised and wondered why it took me so long to go.
You’ll discover so much about yourself on this journey just as I have. You’ll also be surprised by some of things you can do.

The marriage thing is the worst as if we control when that happens but alas people worry cos they don’t know a path that is different! Yet they forget they were pioneers when they up and left Nigeria for a new country to settle. Thank you for reading 😊

Enjoy cuz .. you’ll make some life-long friends & memories in South America hopefully .. and that alone, can feel worth it. Live in the moment while there.

Re: your first paragraphs — a somewhat familiar feeling. Once personally back in order, seeing the Seven Wonders of the World then became the guide to my life decisions (grad school choices, choosing between attending conflicting events abroad, attending weddings). Good you learned from others’ regrets, instead of it potentially being yours.

Your post aligns nicely with 3 of my favorited Reverend Run posts from a while ago that I check back to read every so often — these aren’t new concepts — just concepts we often choose to ignore:

20 years from now you WILL NOT be upset by the things you DID but the things u DIDNT do #makemoves!

Thank you so much for your comments and for reading. Its funny I probably didn’t travel anywhere near as much as I do now compared to my twenties. There is a season for everything and different for everyone. This is mine I suppose 😊

Loved hearing your story! Sounds like you’ve made some big decisions, but I don’t think you’ll regret them! And what a great way to learn Spanish. Being in a country where the language is spoken makes it so much easier to pick up! Happy travels!

It’s wonderful that you took the leap – it’s so brave to move to a country that has a different official language than your native language! I hope you’re having a fantastic time in Ecuador! || http://www.lorikemi.com

Its so difficult to keep it up when you are not in the country. Learnt French for 6 years at school and cannot speak a drop of it now, I found it so difficult the grammar structures and exceptions. Thank you so much for reading.

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Hey I'm Tayo a travel luminary who wants to inspire others that life is more than your 9 to 5. Holding down a 9 to 5 yet I'm always seeking adventure packed travel both in the UK and abroad and you should too!